General News
A former Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly, (LAHA) Mr Adeyemi Ikuforiji, says the state legislature has always stood out since the beginning of the fourth republic, and never been a rubber stamp.
He said this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos, on the sideline of the executive and legislature parley held on Friday.
He said that the state legislatures could work in synergy with the executive arms without being rubber stamp.
The former speaker said that the legislature could do so by not shying away from doing what it deemed fit, at any point in time.
Ikuforiji said the assembly in Lagos, in the fourth republic, had never been a rubber stamp, because it adhered to the principle of separation of powers in the constitution.
He said that during his time as Speaker, the state legislature had its way and it right, even while working in synergy with the executive,
“This question (of rubber stamp) is probably not a Lagos question.
“All along, from the very beginning, the Lagos House has always stood out, even from the very beginning of this dispensation.
“At the beginning of the fourth republic, we had a governor who himself had been a legislator, and he’s a democrat.
” This is in person of President Bola Tinubu; no one will find Tinubu wanting when it comes to democratic practices, which is the hallmark of our political party as well, so Lagos State house can not and will never be a rubber stamp of any executive,” he said.
Ikuforiji said that while he was a speaker to then Gov Tinubu, “Legislature had its way, had its right and always did it as they deemed fit, and the executive was also fully supported by the legislature.”
He said that such balance, which also played out with the Speaker and Assembly before him, would always prevent the legislature from being a rubber stamp.
On his part, Mr Solomon Bonu, representing Badagry 1 at the Lagos House of Assembly, told NAN that lawmakers in the state knew their onions in the area of separation of powers.
He said that such stance prevents a legislature from being a rubber stamp of the executive.
“In Lagos House of Assembly, we know our onions; the right time to say the right thing, the right time to do the right thing,” he said.
The lawmaker said Lagos follows the stipulation of the constitution in terms of checks and balances of the three arm of government seriously.
“In Lagos State there’s nothing like rubber stamp when it comes to the process of governance.
“I’ve tasted the two, I was a member of the executive council before, the difference is clear, Lagos assembly knows their onions,” he said.
Bonu commended Gov. Babajide Sanwo-Olu for his incentives to residents to cushion the effects of the harsh economic situation, saying it was being felt in his constituency.
He said that three markets had been opened for palliatives in Badagry and he was making effort to do more for his constituency.
“I’m in talks with the governor so we can have a permanent structure like that of Mushin in Badagry,” he said.
Also speaking, Mr Lanre Okunola, who represents Surulere II at the Federal House of Representatives, said the constitution was clear about separation of powers, and Lagos had been doing well in that regard.
He told NAN that the functions of the legislative house and executive were clear, and working in synergy did not necessitate being a rubber stamp assembly.
The legislator said that there must be synergy for the development of the state.
On Gov. Sanwo-Olu’s incentive to ease hardship, he told NAN that palliatives are temporary solutions, urging the government to seek more permanent solutions.
“Benefit has different perspectives. When you say palliative, it is a short term measure to look at what the real issues are.
“It’s a continual process in view of the policies that have been rolled out, you will expect certain parameters to come to play.
“I believe that we’re almost out of the woods and will begin to leverage on a better Nigeria,” he said.(NAN)
17th March, 2024.
C.E.
Tags: Adeyemi Ikuforiji
